Harlan Rowe will once again be representing the Athens Area School District and the state of Pennsylvania at the National Science Olympiad Tournament at Michigan State University on May 24th-25th. The team qualified by finishing in the top two teams at the state tournament this past weekend. It’s been three years since the team last qualified.
The tournament which was expected to be a tight race between 2nd and 3rd place ended up being a battle between 1st and 2nd. In the competition (where the low score wins), Harlan Rowe scored 87 points to Springhouse’s 82. The next closest team was Eagle View at 169 points.
Of the 23 events, Harlan Rowe earned 3 gold medals and 8 silvers translating into finishing 1st or 2nd in about half the events. However, it was the remainder of the events that allowed the team to keep the overall score so close.
“It was our consistent performance across the board that helped us out.” said coach John Slocum.
Harlan Rowe medaled in 22 of 23 events, with the 23rd event missing a medal by just 1 place. Springhouse left the door open by getting a construction violation in Wheeled Vehicle, and by a misplaced mirror in Optics, nearly allowing Harlan to overtake them.
“We had only 4 returning competing team members, with 11 students new to the State Competition, but their dedication, hard work, and the sheer number of hours they put into preparation were enough to overcome their inexperience. I’m so excited to take them to the National Tournament where they can continue to add achievements to their growing resumes of success,” Slocum added.
With only four weeks until Nationals, the students have already begun preparations and fundraising to pay for the trip to Michigan. Community members wishing to help out can send donations to “Athens Science Olympiad Booster Club, PO Box 421, Athens PA 18810”.
Medals were awarded to the following students:
1st Place:
Air Trajectory – Colton Jennings, Joshua Karakala;
Dynamic Planet – Gavin Ross, Samantha Smith;
Wheeled Vehicle – Grace Hall, Johnny Robert;
2nd Place:
Cant Judge a Powder – Grace Hall, Samantha Smith;
Flight – Carly Leonard, Caroline Johnson;
Forestry – Carly Leonard, Celeus Gigee;
Fossils – Carly Leonard, Gavin Ross;
Meteorology – Allyson Rowe, Carly Leonard;
Reach for the Stars – Johnny Roberts, Samantha Smith;
Roller Coaster – Gavin Ross, Lilah Carlson;
Towers – Celeus Gigee, Katyayini Kinthala;
3rd Place:
Optics – Gavin Ross, Johnny Roberts;
Road Scholar – Colton Jennings, Sofia Marica;
Wind Power – Colton Jennings, Jordan Lattimer;
4th Place:
Codebusters – Allyson Rowe, Katyayini Kinthala, Sofia Marica;
Microbe Mission – Allyson Rowe, Joshua Karakala;
5th Place:
Crime Busters – Grace Hall, Jordan Lattimer;
Write It Do It – Carly Leonard, Sofia Marica;
6th Place:
Fast Facts – Jordan Lattimer, Katyayini Kinthala;
7th Place:
Experimental Design – Katyayini Kinthala, Lilah Carlson, Samantha Smith;
8th Place:
Anatomy and Physiology – Allyson Rowe, Katyayini Kinthala;
9th Place:
Ecology – Caroline Johnson, Katyayini Kinthala
